Isaac stared at the letter for a long while without moving, as if he was frozen stiff.He was simply staggered… To think that Yvaine Lynd had written such a letter to Irene! He certainly never expected his mother to remember everything but not come back to him because she fell in love with Mick Gooding!Haha… the irony! His mother fell in love with another man. Did she even think what that made of his father?His fingers clenched, and the paper crumpled in his grasp.Stephen was mentioned in the letter…Rising to his feet, he stormed toward Stephen's office.Stephen looked up the instant he opened his office door and quickly rose to his feet when he saw that it was Isaac.While he had weathered his fair share of drama with patients and their families over the years, he felt pure, gripping fear around Isaac. Perhaps because he was feeling guilty and hid a lot of things from the man, he did not dare to meet Isaac's gaze. Even as he kept his eyes elsewhere, he asked, "Is ther
Irene agreed to be the scapegoat implicated with Yvaine's death. And it was all because Yvaine had written her letter, asking her to save Mick.She just wanted to carry out Yvaine's will, only for Isaac to misunderstand and give her the silent treatment.How miserable must she have felt? She could not tell him anything because Yvaine told her not to, leaving her to suffer it all alone!"My selfishness led to this. I shouldn't have asked someone innocent to take the fall just to save a friend, and cause a misunderstanding between you and her. I'm sorry—""'Sorry?'" Isaac scoffed. "Did you think that's going to cut it?!"Stephen did not dare to say a word in response—it was true, a mere sorry was not going to cut it."'Violated your ethics as a doctor', was it? Then you shouldn't keep your job, or you'll insult the profession," Isaac growled before turning to leave. He then stopped at the doorway, and added without looking back, "People like you don't deserve anything."With t
When the door opened and Irene saw the person standing outside, she exclaimed in surprise, "You?!""Stephen contacted me and gave me your address," Mick Gooding told her. "He wants someone to take care of you, since you've just arrived and probably not used to this place."Irene did not let him in immediately—naturally, she had her concerns."Don't worry," Mick assured her. "Stephen told me everything—your secret is safe with me."It was only then that Irene let him in.While Mick survived a car crash, he was injured considerably. It was only thanks to the advancement of medical technology that he made a full recovery. Even so, Yvaine's death still hit him badly—he looked much older now, and the tip of his hair was turning white, as if he aged a decade in an instant.After Mick entered, he gave Irene a business card. "Here's my number and address. Contact me if you need help." Irene took it out of politeness. "Thank you.""You don't have to. I mean, didn't you come here beca
Irene's call was soon answered. "Is there a problem? Why are you calling at this hour? It must be midnight over there…"Irene had been keeping contact with Stephen over the last six months, and he occasionally took photos or videos of Tommy there. In fact, he recently sent her a video of Tommy, but she was now calling him again, intent on asking for more favors despite it although she would be asking too much.But it was Tommy's birthday."Why aren't you saying anything?" Stephen noticed her silence. "Like I said, I've already gathered the stuff you left on your desk."Stephen did not dare to tell her the truth. Knowing that she would get worried, he decided to just tell her that she took everything—she was not going to find out from over there anyway.Irene said softly, "I know, but that's not what I'm asking about. It's my son's birthday…""It took me over a month to get that video for you," Stephen told her.It was certainly difficult for Stephen to reach Tommy, what with S
In the car, Mick told Irene, "There's going to be a lot of expensive antiques, jewelry, and other items at the auction. Tell me if you see anything you like, and I'll get it for you."He then added, "I don't mean anything by this. You were Yvaine's daughter-in-law, and I already think of you as my daughter."Irene smiled. "I'm not really interested in all that stuff.""I see… Actually, I collect old books and antiques, and Yvaine used to attend these auctions with me…"Misery showed on his face once he mentioned Yvaine, and Irene changed the subject. "Are the people attending rich?"Average Joes would not be able to afford anything from such auctions after all."Yeah," Mick replied. "They are expecting rich people from across the world."Irene nodded—such auctions were a pastime for the wealthy.They happened to arrive at the auction center just then, and they saw the many luxury cars parked outside.Irene was almost able to recognize most, since many of them were limited edit
Irene panicked and quickly turned away, fearful that she would be recognized. Mick noticed that, and shifted his body to keep her hidden, while asking quietly, "What's wrong?'"A familiar face," Irene replied softly, even as she slid another peek at the man.There was no mistaking it—that was Harvey Gooding.She never expected him to show up there!Nonetheless, Mick told her, "Don't worry. He's not going to notice—the hall is quite dimly lit and you're wearing a mask." Irene was actually just too surprised to see Harvey there and became nervous. Still, she quickly calmed down, and thought to herself that he would not notice her since she was sitting behind him. Moreover, he probably would not recognize her after what had happened to her face anyway. Soon, the auction began, with the host giving a simple speech before proceeding to the auction proper.Most items auctioned for the day could be categorized into an assortment of antiques and jewelry, with the first one being a
The man's tall frame was blocking Irene's path and his shadow shrouded her.It was a familiar face, too—because it was Harvey.Irene quickly lowered her head, but Harvey was keeping his eyes fixed on her, as if he wanted to see through her mask. "Who are you?" he demanded. "I noticed back at the hall that you've been peeking at Isaac Jefferson—who is he to you? Why are you watching him so intently?""You're mistaken," Irene said quietly, avoiding his gaze even as she tried to leave.Harvey was relentless, however, and intercepted her again. "Sneaking around as if you're afraid to let people see you? Are you a fugitive or something?"This time, as he spoke, he suddenly reached out and pulled off Irene's face mask, catching her off guard."Hey!" she exclaimed in surprise, and quickly threw her hands over her face. Beneath the lights overhead, the burn scars over her cheek and neck were revealed in their entirety.Harvey actually flinched in shock. "My god, you're ugly!" he c
James was puzzled. "The security footage of the auction? Why?"Isaac turned to look at him.Though he said nothing, the pressure he projected was almost palpable. James quickly lowered his head, afraid to ask more questions right then. "I'll go right now."While Isaac did manage to pull himself together after Irene's death, he was constantly overworking and suffered from chronic insomnia. Every night, he needed medication just to sleep.And if one were to say that he was cold as a person before, he was now even worse. In fact, he only saved his harshness for his rivals, and was more or less 'kind' to his own people. Now, even Stan had resigned as an assistant in favor of a desk job.It was not as if he was scared, but it was very difficult to work alongside Isaac these days.The air around him seemed to turn cold from his very presence, and the people with him constantly felt a suffocating pressure. Working with him had undoubtedly become a torment.And now, James did